My dear sister-in-law Susan has been keeping us supplied with all sorts of wonderful gifts during this pandemic.

Right now we are working on a 1000-piece puzzle, one of two that she sent us. It's going pretty well. This one is from White Mountain Puzzles and is filled with candy wrappers down the ages. It has everything from BB Bats to Jujubes, and the entire Sugar Daddy family, including Sugar Mama and Sugar Babies. It's a real trip down memory lane for me.

The main place that we got candy in Callicoon was when we went to the movies at the Arden Theater, now called the Callicoon Theater. When we were old enough, we usually went to the movies on Friday or Saturday night, and getting candy was always part of the experience.

It's a wonder that any of us had any of our teeth back then, what with all the candy we consumed. I was never much of a movie popcorn girl but give me a box of Jujubes or Sugar Babies, and I was in hog heaven. Oh, what those Jujubes could do to your teeth! Like to pull a filling out. Yikes.

One candy wrapper missing from my puzzle is Twizzlers. It's a safe bet that over the course of my life I have eaten several metric tons of that red licorice delight. I was never one for black licorice, unless, of course, it was covered with a candy shell, à la Good N Plenty. My candy-eating rules are quite flexible.

I am exceedingly open-minded about confections, but there are some things that I cannot abide. One is nuts in chocolate. Give me a Hershey bar with almonds and I'll pass. But give me a box of Whoppers and stand back—I'm goin' in!

I would say at this point that we are about 80% done with the puzzle. It has been a challenge. The puzzle just fits (thank goodness!) on the coffee table and we have been working on it since Saturday.

What I can't get over is how sometimes I'll be working on the puzzle, looking at it upside-down, and I suddenly the placement of the pieces is easier. Don't know how to explain that one. And I also am surprised how a piece that I have been looking for will suddenly just pop into view in a place I know I have repeatedly scanned. There's some mystery afoot!

I love doing a big puzzle, and Susan's gifts have been wonderful. I have to say that I am surprised how little television I'm watching. Between this puzzle and our busy days, there's just no time for anything else.

Except, maybe for a pound or two of Twizzlers. Anyone know where I could find some?

Contributed Photo

The completed puzzle! It has everything from BB Bats to Jujubes, and the entire Sugar Daddy family, including Sugar Mama and Sugar Babies.